Brit Mila: An Oath of Loyalty

In previous generations, parents arranged marriages for their sons and daughters, convinced that the spouses they chose for their children would be ideal life partners for them. In a similar way, Jewish parents throughout the generations bring their newborn sons into a covenant with the God of Israel, eternally uniting them with their most ideal Partner. Brit mila is the act by which a Jewish child and God become engaged.

Circumcision is an eternal pledge that parents make to God. It is a promise that their child will not be an ordinary human being, but one who will live by God’s commandments and consequently help move mankind towards the final redemption. By performing a brit mila, Jewish parents proudly proclaim that their son is destined to become a light and blessing to all nations. (1)

One may ask: What gives parents the right to bring this child into an eternal covenant without his consent? How can we commit a child to a lifelong mission that he may not choose to fulfill?

Judaism turns the tables on this argument with a remarkable response: On the contrary, would it not be unjust to bring a child into the world without a higher mission? While Socrates explained that a life without thinking is not worth living, Judaism teaches us that life without a commitment to God is no life at all. The dignity of man stands in proportion to his obligations. We pass on this divine dignity to our children when we make them contractually obligated to fulfill the covenant with God. To withhold this awesome responsibility is to deny them the opportunity to experience the highest, truest value of living in this world.

The circumcision – the promise – is God’s seal imprinted on the human flesh. And it is only proper that this sign of allegiance be imposed upon the body, for after all, it is not the soul that needs to make a commitment. The soul is committed to its Creator. It is the body that, because of its inclination to feed its own base desires, must make a vow to compel itself to serve God. Like a piece of paper that carries the buying power of a certain dollar amount, the body serves as the vessel that holds the soul. Just as the symbolic markings on the bill inform us of the value assigned to it by the treasury department, so too the ‘signs’ we make on our bodies reveal the greatness of the souls they house. Furthermore, if the body fails to live up to its lofty responsibilities, the physical imprint of the circumcision serves as a constant reminder of what it means to reside in the presence of God; it is a testimony to one’s spiritual obligations and potential.

Like the revelation at Sinai, a circumcision is an event that exists as a moment in the past, yet extends into the present. From man’s perspective the brit mila happens just once, but from God’s perspective the message conveyed by this act – the Jewish nation’s unwavering commitment to God – resounds forever. Monuments of stone may disappear; acts of spirit will never vanish.

At Sinai the Jews committed themselves to the Torah with the words na’aseh ve-nishma, “We shall do and we shall hear.” Without yet knowing what the Torah would require of them, the Jewish people committed themselves to the uncertain task of serving the Creator of the universe. On the eighth day of a Jewish child’s life, at the time of circumcision, his parents imprint God’s seal on his body, thus bringing him into the covenant with God in the tradition of na’aseh ve-nishma. From that moment, the child begins his journey on the road of commitment to holiness that, although not yet known, is the most challenging and most rewarding mission life can offer – to become a servant of God, and a blessing to all nations. (2)

(1) Bereshit 12:2; Yeshayahu 42:6; Yeshayahu 49:6.

(2) Inspired by Abraham Joshua Heschel.

Share this:

About Nathan Lopes Cardozo

Rabbi Dr. Nathan Lopes Cardozo is the Founder and Dean of the David Cardozo Academy and the Bet Midrash of Avraham Avinu in Jerusalem. A sought-after lecturer on the international stage for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences, Rabbi Cardozo is the author of 13 books and numerous articles in both English and Hebrew. He heads a Think Tank focused on finding new Halachic and philosophical approaches to dealing with the crisis of religion and identity amongst Jews and the Jewish State of Israel. Hailing from the Netherlands, Rabbi Cardozo is known for his original and often fearlessly controversial insights into Judaism. His ideas are widely debated on an international level on social media, blogs, books and other forums.

Every week I receive hundreds of emails, as well as a host of important observations on my essays, via our website, Facebook, newspaper blogs, and other media outlets. It is therefore completely impossible for me to respond – for which I apologize – but please be assured that I read every comment, which I deeply appreciate and from which I learn so much. Only in exceptional cases will I respond in a subsequent essay. My office staff will try to be more prompt in posting these remarks on our website.

Thank you very much for taking the time to share your comments with me, as well as with your fellow readers. I hope you will continue to do so.

Subscribe to Thoughts to Ponder

The David Cardozo Academy seeks to revitalize the Jewish tradition and restore the relevance of Judaism as a force of authentic, non-dogmatic Jewish religiosity in which Jews once more take pride in the divine Torah and its great moral and spiritual mission towards all of mankind.

From the DCA Think Tank

We're delighted to share with you a full-color bulletin with photos detailing what the David Cardozo Academy Think Tank has been up to this year - our regular activities plus an Open Think Tank for the public in March. There are also questions for you to ponder - it wouldn't be the DCA Think Tank without them! Read more →

Think Tank Blogs

Spiritual experiences may represent our yearning for the “infinite”, but this yearning can only find expression in seeking to improve ourselves to the best of our ability and seeking to relate with love to the people and the world around us, while at the same time coming to an acceptance of our finiteness and separateness, overcoming the grief and outrage we feel at not being everything. Yearning for the infinite is really a way of learning how to be finite. Read more →